On the morning of September 1st, the Burrow was shrouded in the gloomy atmosphere of a holiday coming to an end. Heavy rain poured outside, bean-sized raindrops pattering loudly against the windows.
Mrs. Weasley stomped back and forth through the Burrow, urging everyone to finish packing and make sure they had not forgotten anything. Mr. Weasley stood by the fireplace, discussing work with Amos Diggory, whose head was suspended in the flames.
The two of them were talking about the retired Auror Alastor Moody. From the sound of it, Moody believed he had been attacked and had caused some sort of disturbance. His Muggle neighbors had even called the police, but the Ministry of Magic did not seem to be taking it seriously.
Bertha Jorkins had been missing for so long, and although Ministry employees all knew that their colleague had disappeared, no one had ever thought of looking for her. Now Moody was also claiming he had been attacked, and the Ministry was once again ignoring it.
The wizards of the magical world were truly kind-hearted, to have allowed a Ministry like this to exist for so long...
After hastily stuffing down a couple bites of bread, Mr. Weasley hurried out of the Burrow. Only he could smooth things over for Moody and keep the retired Auror from being punished.
Alastor Moody, a highly decorated Auror, had personally sent half the inmates of Azkaban to prison. Yet now, this very Auror had become half-crazy, and everyone called him Mad-Eye.
This was not the first time Moody had caused trouble. He really did seem unstable now, always nervously convinced that someone was trying to harm him. Was it paranoia, or post-traumatic stress disorder? Eda did not know, but she felt sorry for Moody.
With Mr. Weasley absent, Bill and Charlie decided to take everyone to school in their father's place, but there was one problem: the turquoise Anglia was still freely roaming the Forbidden Forest!
In the end, Eda and Hermione went into the village and used the telephone at the post office to book three Muggle taxis to take them to London's King's Cross Station.
The rain grew heavier and heavier. In the yard drenched by the downpour, the taxi drivers stuffed six heavy Hogwarts trunks into the trunks of the cars. After a small struggle, everyone finally squeezed into the taxis, while the expressions on the drivers' faces were full of despair.
Noisy owls, cats scratching people with sharp claws, dogs constantly jumping in and out of the cars, self-exploding magical fireworks... this experience was enough to leave a lifelong impression on the drivers.
The rain in London was even worse. By the time they got out at King's Cross Station, everyone had been soaked through. They could only huddle in a corner and line up while Bill and Charlie used magic to dry their clothes.
Slipping sideways through the barrier, Platform Nine and Three-Quarters appeared once again. The Hogwarts Express was already waiting there, a deep red steam engine billowing thick clouds of smoke.
After saying goodbye to Mrs. Weasley, Bill, and Charlie, Charlie mysteriously leaned close to Eda and whispered, "I think we'll be seeing each other again very soon."
Completely confused, Eda asked, "Are you coming back to Hogwarts? To do what?"
"You'll find out," Charlie said. "When the time comes, you'll know what I'm going to do. Good luck, Eda. Make sure you win the Triwizard Tournament Cup."
The pistons of the engine let out loud hissing sounds as the train slowly began to move. Bill and Charlie stood on the platform, waving goodbye to their younger brothers and sister aboard the train.
"Ah, I really wish I could go back to Hogwarts this year. This year's going to be very interesting!" Bill said. His hands were in his pockets as he stared at the train with a somewhat wistful expression.
"Want to make a bet, Bill?" Charlie said. "I bet Eda will definitely become Hogwarts' champion, and she'll win the tournament too."
"Even bookworm Percy knows how amazing Eda is. I'm not stupid," Bill shot his brother an annoyed look. "What enviable talent..."
The train rounded a bend and disappeared from the sight of Mrs. Weasley, Bill, and Charlie. Likewise, the people on the train could no longer see the platform. The new school year began amid the heavy rain.
On the train, Eda and the twins found Angelina and the others. After chatting for only a few moments, Eda changed into her school robes and left the compartment. She needed to attend the prefect meeting.
Passing through carriage after carriage, Eda arrived at the prefects' compartment. When she opened the door, quite a few people were already seated inside, including some unfamiliar faces, presumably the newly selected prefects for this year. The Head Boy badge was pinned to the chest of a seventh-year Ravenclaw student.
Several students in the compartment stood up. Eda was now very famous at school, but not many people had actually interacted with her. The new fifth-year prefects seemed somewhat restrained around her. Cedric, however, greeted Eda familiarly, and Cody Avery also smiled and said hello.
"We were just wondering who this year's Head Girl would be, and you happened to show up," Cedric said.
"Other than you, we really can't think of anyone else suited for the position," Cody Avery added flatteringly.
The earlier discussion in the compartment had indeed favored Eda. The position of Head Girl was usually given to a seventh-year student, but nobody had ever said a sixth-year student could not hold it. Besides, other than Professor McGonagall, nobody could really control Eda. Choosing someone else as Head Girl would only make things difficult for them.
After a while, more people gradually filled the compartment. Once all the prefects had arrived, the meeting officially began.
The Head Boy from Ravenclaw presided over the meeting, saying a bunch of meaningless things, mostly nonsense about cooperating with the professors to manage the students, the usual duties of student self-government.
After talking for a while, the Head Boy said, "That's all from me. Twist, do you have anything to add?"
Normally, this would be the moment for Eda to say, "Then I'll just say a few words," and continue endlessly until everyone became allergic to the sound of whistles. But was Eda an ordinary person? She was not, even though she really did want to say a few words.
Eda swept her gaze across the prefects' faces before saying, "Some of you know me, some of you don't. But I hope all of you will follow what I'm about to say. I don't want there to be any unpleasantness in our cooperation."
As soon as those words came out, the prefects immediately declared that they would absolutely follow the Head Girl's instructions and never disobey them. Even those unfamiliar with Eda had at least heard of her reputation, or notoriety, at Hogwarts. Going against her was never going to end well!
"Very good," Eda said. "There's a major event happening at Hogwarts this year. Some of you know about it, some of you don't. It doesn't matter if you don't. Just listen to me."
Eda continued, "This year, the school will host a very important competition. Students from other schools will be coming to Hogwarts. I hope all of you will fulfill your duties properly and maintain order within the school."
"What about Fred and George?" Cedric interjected at the perfect moment. He had caught the subtle look Eda had given him.
The others, who had failed to notice or understand Eda's glance, all looked at Cedric in confusion. Everyone at school knew about Eda's relationship with the Weasley twins. Bringing them up now was basically putting the new Head Girl on the spot.
Yet Eda's next words completely stunned everyone. With a serious expression, she declared, "We will show absolutely no tolerance for any mistakes made by the two Mr. Weasleys. Severe punishment!"
Had they fallen out? That was everyone's shallow conclusion. They simply assumed Eda had argued with the twins.
Only Cedric understood what Eda really meant. At Hogwarts, the prerequisite for breaking school rules was getting caught. If you were not caught, you could set the castle on fire and nothing would happen.
With the Head Girl personally standing lookout, who could possibly catch Fred and George?
"Second, I hope all of you remember your identity. First and foremost, you are Hogwarts students." Eda raised her voice, emphasizing this point. "This year, if there are any conflicts or disputes between Hogwarts students and students from other schools, you are to support the Hogwarts students, regardless of who is right or wrong."
"I do not want to see any Hogwarts student being taken advantage of. If someone has done wrong, we will handle it ourselves. We do not need outsiders interfering." Eda tapped the table twice with her knuckles. "Understood?"
The prefects all nodded. Everyone knew Eda was fiercely protective of her own, and now they were finally experiencing it firsthand.
"Eda, does 'any student' include Slytherins too?" Cody Avery suddenly raised his hand and asked.
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